After strong quarter, Ford aims to 'disrupt like a startup'

DETROIT (Reuters) - Ford Motor Co's chief executive, Mark Fields, said on Tuesday he wants the company to act "like a startup" as it prepares for an evolution of the auto industry, after it posted second-quarter profit that handily beat expectations.

Ford and other major automakers are racing to position themselves to profit during what Fields termed a rare "period of change and disruption in the industry" that includes car-sharing, autonomous vehicles, connected cars and new ways for people to get around.

Fields pointed to 25 experiments Ford announced earlier this year to determine mobility needs of the globe's consumers in the coming decades.

"We are really pushing ourselves to think, to act, and disrupt like a startup company," said Fields, who heads the automaker founded by Henry Ford 112 years ago.

Ford's traditional business generated in the second quarter the company's highest automotive profit since 2000, based on the strength of its core truck and SUV business in Ford's home North American market.

Fields and Ford Chief Financial Officer Bob Shanks said the second half of 2015 will generate more than the $4.3 billion in first-half operating profit, as new launches increase sales and command better prices. The company maintained its 2015 operating profit forecast of between $8.5 billion and $9.5 billion, and said it would likely be in the higher part of that range.

Ford posted net quarterly profit of $1.89 billion, or 47 cents per share. Analysts estimated profit of 37 cents per share, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.

Ford shares were up 1.6 percent at $14.79 at midday.

Operating profit totaled nearly $2.6 billion in North America, a company record for any quarter.

Ford also maintained a forecast of North American profit margin between 8.5 percent and 9.5 percent. First-half North American margin was 9.1 percent.

Operating profit in Asia Pacific rose 21 percent to $192 million despite a dip in industry sales in China, the world's biggest auto market.

"As this has been happening, we have been adjusting our production all along" due to the lower demand, said Shanks.

Ford lowered its 2015 forecast for industry sales in China to 23 million to 24 million vehicles, from 24.5 million to 26.5 million at the start of the year.

Shanks said Ford also achieved stronger pricing in North America because of the rollout of new versions of several models, including the F-150 truck and the Edge and Explorer SUVs.

(Editing by Jeffrey Benkoe and Matthew Lewis)

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